One Life Given Up for Another
by Calleigh Baby
Summary: As a girl heads into a new chapter in her life, Eric reflects. Past E/C, contains character death.


**Hey ok so this is just a little one shot to fill the time in between my next chapter of When Love Knocks You Down. Hope you like. Also be warned that it might make you very sad because it has character death.**

"God, if only you could see her now. She is just an amazing girl," I said as I looked to the sky.

Today is the day when Calleigh Marisol Delko-Duquense, my baby, is going off to university. I sighed, thinking about all the happy and sad times we had gone through together.I shook my head sadly wishing she could see this. I looked back up to the bright blue sky. Then I turned my head back to my little angel.

"Ok, I'm ready!" I heard her call from in front of me.

All I could do was smile at her. Her excitement about going off to Tulane, and no matter the ache in my heart, her excitement is contagious. I walked over to her and hugged her tightly, smiling at her through glassy eyes.

"Don't cry." She soothed "I'll be back," she reassured.

"Ya, you will," I returned, trying to lighten the mood.

She smiled back at me and turned to her car, opening the door.

"Wait!" I called out

She turned around abruptly to face me, confusion written on her face. I reached behind my back to retrieve the gift that my wife and I had stored away for a day like today. I handed her a little package.

"Your mom would somehow find a way to kill me if I didn't give this to you," I said, laughing lightly.

She began to open the package slowly and cautiously. She opened the box and tears began to form in her eyes. She looked back at me through glassy green eyes and gave me a massive hug.

When we pulled back I looked at her.

"That gun was your mom's..." I paused to regain my voice. "She made me swear to give this to you if she wasn't around." I sighed and looked at her

"Thanks..." She looked at the gun in her hands and holstered it and clipped it to her pants.

Without another word she got in her car and started her engine, driving off the driveway to start her journey for the rest of her life. I watched until she was out of sight, then turned to the house. I smiled, thinking about the time that me and her found this house.

_*Flashback*_

"_Let's look at that one." She pointed to a house on the block._

"_Ok...Honey...you never said why we needed a bigger house." _

_She turned her head and looked out the window. I heard her sigh "Because Eric...I'm...pregnant," she said with teary eyes._

"_THAT'S GREAT...Wait, why aren't you excited?"_

"_Let's just look at the house, ok?"_

_I let the topic drop, knowing that pushing her would be a bad idea. As we walked up to the house she took in the lawn and the house's general exterior._

_After looking at the house she couldn't stop talking about it. How it was the perfect house and just what she was looking for. When she finally stopped talking she asked me what I thought about it._

_The drive home was filled with talk about house and how they would pay for it. She was so disappointed when we did the math and found out that we couldn't afford it that the next day I went and offered a little less than the asking price and they gave me the house on the spot._

_When I told her that I bought her the house she was ecstatic._

"_God, it will be the perfect house for you and the little one." _

"_Wait, what?! 'Me and the little one'_?_" I couldn't believe that she would just leave me and the baby._

_She cast her eyes down, sighing. "Yes...It's a high risk pregnancy for me and the baby. The doctor says that there's a good chance that I might..." She stopped and hugged me tightly, as if clinging to me for dear life._

That memory is painful but at the same time it brings a smile to my face. When she first told me I though that she was talking about a miscarriage, but when she was in the delivery room I realized that she meant that she could die.

I sighed hoping that she was looking down and thought that I did a good job raising her baby. I walked up the steps and entered the house. The memories of her and me looking at it flooded my brain. I ran a hand through my hair and picked up my car keys, while I walked to the garage I thought of how happy she must be up there. But then I thought about how sad she must be looking down and seeing that she missed out on what she wanted so much.

I drove to the grave yard, parked the car, got out and walked to her grave.

When I got there I placed the lilacs on the ground by her head stone. My eyes cast downward toward the writing on the stone. The stone is engraved with the words the best described her, in such a short amount of space. I read the stone again for the gizzilionth time since the day she was burred it read

_In loving memory of Calleigh-Anne Duquense_

_Beloved mother, wife and friend_

_Born Sep. 1st '75 Died Sept. 5th '10_

I refused to let the tears fall as I tried so hard to hold on. It wasn't until I looked to the ground and saw a large bouquet of red, white, yellow roses and lilies. I picked up the card and read it. The card brought tears to my eyes as I realized who had visited her grave sight. Her own daughter had visited her mothers grave and left a bouquet of flowers. I sighed thinking how hard it must have been to grow up around photos and memories of her mother around and never really knowing her.

I stood there for a long time and just thought about her and my daughter. The only thing that made me smile when ever I was at her grave was the thought of her face when she got to hold her daughter for the first and last time. They way her eyes lit up and the tired smile that graced her features. I looked up to the now clouding sky and whispered

"I love you" then I walked away slowly and made my way to my car.

As the sun set I looked to the horizon and saw what looked like a light created figure of Calleigh. He waved and then disappeared, as a sigh-lent tear slipped out from the corner of my eye, I waved back then drove off to our house.

**Hey thank you so much for reading this. This is my first time trying this writing style. Please, Please review. Thanks again**

**Again review, favorite, alert me do what ever just make this a major hit.**


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